A Favorite Christmas Tradition

A snowy day is a great day to bake! So, we decided to make Moravian cookies. These are such a special Christmas tradition for me. I remember making these cookies with my Grandma Davis every year since I was a tiny girl. Now I make them each Christmas with my children. We use her rolling pin, her rolling board, her cookie cutters, and of course her recipe. I can almost feel her smiling as we continue her tradition.

Allison enjoyed watching us!

As I roll out the cookie dough and make it paper thin, just as Grandma used to do, I can't help but think about her. She had 4 children just like me. 3 boys and 1 girl, just like me. I wonder, did she feel inadequate like I do? Did her babies sleep through the night? Did she take her kids on playdates? Did she feel exhausted and weary, like I do? Did she have a lot of friends when her children were little? Were there days she just wanted to cry because she couldn't be everything she needed/wanted to be? Did she ever get tired of cooking meal after meal? How did she handle hurt feelings and whiny children? Did she and Pawpaw go on date nights? How in the world did she get everything done (including ironing their sheets and underwear??...she really did that!) I wish I could talk to her now. As a mom of 4, I would love to hear her advice. I would love to listen to words of wisdom. I would love to make Moravian cookies with her again and soak in more of who she was.

Today I am grateful for snowy days to bake with my little boys. They have so much fun making the cookies, just like I did when I was their age. I look forward to making the cookies with Allison too. I am also thankful for traditions. In the past I never really paid much attention to the importance of traditions but now I see how valuable they are, especially when a loved one is no longer with us. Traditions help us remember them, help us replay the impact they had in our lives, and cause us to thank God for the blessing they were to us.

I can't believe this will be our fifth Christmas without her. It feels like just yesterday she was helping Dylan make Moravian cookies. I am so thankful for memories and for the traditions that help those memories stay at the forefront of our minds. Her Moravian cookies will always be a special part of Christmas for me.